AllFreeNovel
Share Us
And to give him a quick kiss.
Lucas’s mouth tilts in a sinful smirk. “That’s the best you can do, sweetheart?” He places extra emphasis on the last word so it comes out as a drawl. “People won’t believe we’re married with that kiss.” Lucas’s hand goes to the curve of my spine, and his thumb caresses the skin under my sundress. Electricity strums beneath his touch, and my heart rate soars. Soars high up where birds sing, the fast cadence of their tune matching my heart rate, beat for beat.
And just like that, a needy whimper escapes me.
I pull away, and my lips morph into a smile that asks, Your place or mine? “Now there’s no doubt in everyone’s mind we married for the right reasons.” It certainly convinced my body.
“You might be right about that.” His voice is low, gravelly, yet smooth like hot lava. The sound of it pours over me, caresses me. My skin tingles and my lady bits sigh.
I scan the faces turned our way, pretending I’m looking for someone, gauging people’s reaction to our show of affection.
One face in particular is scowling at us. Not the reaction I was expecting. Or more accurately, if looks really could kill, Lucas and I would be incinerated to a smoking crisp.
Shaved short dark hair. Scraggly beard. Antarctica-chilled demeanor. The man is a stranger to me.
“Why is that man glaring at us?” I nod in his direction.
Lucas turns, but the man in the grayish-blue camo pants and navy T-shirt has already stalked away, blending in with the families enjoying the festivities. “What man?”
“I don’t know who he was. I’ve never seen him before.”
“What did he look like?”
I describe him.
“Doesn’t sound familiar.”
“Is something wrong?” Kellan asks us.
“A man was glaring at Lucas and me, but I didn’t recognize him.”
A frown creases Zara’s brow. “Glaring at you because you two were kissing?”
“I have no idea. Maybe he has a thing for Lucas and wasn’t thrilled I was the one kissing my husband.” The joke was meant to calm the uncertainty uncoiling in my belly. It falls flat.
“You were sniffing around Kincaid Timber a few weeks ago,” Garrett says to Lucas. “It’s possible you pissed someone off.”
I hug myself, uncomfortable with where this conversation is headed. “Did you find out anything?”
“They weren’t exactly forthcoming.”
I sense there’s something Lucas isn’t telling me that his brothers already know about. None of them question him about what he found out. Because this isn’t news to them.
“Well, whoever the man was, he seems to have a problem with you or me or us both. But I doubt it has anything to do with the conversation I had with Crystal on Wednesday.”
I give Zara the highlights of what little I learned from Crystal. “But the man I saw wasn’t Sebastian. That much I know. Crystal said he’s out east right now, checking out lodges and inns for inspiration.”
Lucas’s hand returns to my lower back. The protective move eases the tangle of nerves knotted in my gut. “We don’t know that for sure. You said he was allegedly in Eugene around the time I was arrested. Unless there are witnesses who can place him there the entire time, we can’t discount the possibility he drove to Maple Ridge.”
“The pictures I saw of Sebastian were of him when he was a teen and younger. So anything is possible. I have no idea what he looks like now.”
“Why don’t you and I check out the sights,” Lucas says, “and see if you can spot him. I am curious what his problem is.”
“We’ll wait here for you,” Kellan tells us. “Em’s shift will be over soon.”
Lucas threads his fingers with mine, and we wander the grounds, pretending to check everything out while I keep my eyes open for the man. The smell of beer from the nearby tent mixes with the odor from the busy petting zoo as we walk past. I don’t see the man who was glaring at me in either place.
“Let’s try over there.” I point toward the area where the artisans are set up and lead Lucas up and down the rows, inspecting the jewelry, candles, soaps, and other items that might be good for my subscription boxes. I buy a few things and collect business cards from other booths. The entire time I keep my eyes open for the man.
